How to Complete the USDA Paid Lunch Equity Tool for SY 19 - Maine Department of Education Child Nutrition May 2018 - Maine.gov

How to Complete the USDA
Paid Lunch Equity Tool for SY 19

     Maine Department of Education
            Child Nutrition
              May 2018

Paid Lunch Equity
• Section 205 of the 2010 Child Nutrition
  Reauthorization Act: Equity in School Lunch
  Pricing
• Ensures equity in the level of financial support to
  the school food service account for paid lunches
• This provision applies only to lunches

Paid Lunch Equity
• USDA issues a target price each year
• Based on the difference between the
  reimbursement rate for free meals and the
  reimbursement rate for paid meals
• SY 2018-19 Target Price is $2.92

Is My District Required to Complete
              the PLE Tool?

You are not required to complete the PLE tool if
the SFA:
1. Has implemented CEP district-wide
2. Is already charging a weighted average that
   meets or exceeds the requirement
3. Has a positive CBB as stated in NEO as of
   January 31, 2018

Paid Lunch Equity Tool

The tool calculates:
• Weighted average paid lunch price for SY
  2017-18
• Required weighted average paid lunch price
  increase for SY 2018-19
• Required non-federal contribution required
  for SY 2018-19 (if needed)

Getting Started

You will need:
1. The completed tool from the prior school
   year (SY 2017-18) – unrounded price
   requirement
2. The current tool for the upcoming year
   (SY19)

Getting Started
1. Completed tool from the prior year in NEO

Getting Started
2.   Download the SY 2019 PLE tool
https://www.maine.gov/doe/nutrition/financial/pricing.html

IMPORTANT!

If the tool will not let you enter data, it is probably because
you are trying to enter information into the WRONG cell.

• There are tabs along the bottom of the excel tool
• You do NOT have to complete all of them

• Step 1:“Unrounded
  Requirement Finder”

• Enter the previous year’s
  price requirement into the
  peach shaded box in “Step
  1”
• Found on the Prior Year’s
  completed Tool

• If you do not know the
  prior year’s unrounded
  price requirement, you
  will need to determine
  the weighted average
  price from SY 2010-2011
  data

• Enter the Unrounded
  Price Requirement into
  the peach colored cell.

• This will populate the
  SY18-19 Weighted
  Average Price
  Requirement

SY 18-19 Price
    Calculator tab

• This tab is used if
  you are going to
  increase prices to
  meet the
  requirement, not
  using non-federal
  funding

• The previous tab
  auto-fills the top
  portion

• Therefore, the
  “Unrounded
  Requirement
  Finder” tab
  MUST be filled
  out first!

• The requirement
  can be rounded
  down to the
  nearest 5 cents

• Determine current
  weighted average
  price

• Enter # of student
  paid lunches &
  corresponding
  paid lunch prices
  from October
  2017

• Now you have this
  school year’s
  weighted average
  price

• Scroll down in this
  tab to view whether
  you need to increase
  your price

The circled box tells you
what your required price is
for the NEXT school year

• If you only increase by
  the 10 cent maximum,
  this box would tell you
  the remaining amount of
  the required increase
  that carries forward

If your current WAP is
greater than the required
amount, this box would
tell you how much you
can carryover toward a
future increase

If a price increase is
necessary, complete Step
3 (scroll down on this
tab) to manipulate the
prices between the
elementary and
secondary to reach the
desired weighted
average price

Increases at both
       levels
• Here we
   increased
   elementary and
   secondary
   prices by 0.10
   each to reach
   the desired
   weighted
   average price of
   2.77

Increase at only
    one level

• Here we
  increased the
  secondary price
  by 0.15 without
  changing the
  elementary
  price to reach
  the desired
  $2.77

Non-Federal Calculator
• Complete this tab if
  you are going to use
  non-federal funds
  instead of raising the
  paid lunch price

Non-Federal Calculator

• Enter the current
  Weighted Average Price
  ($2.67)

Non-Federal Calculator

• Enter the total number
  of annual paid lunches
  in the district for
  SY 16-17

• Enter the non-federal
  contribution as
  reported in NEO SY12-
  SY18

Non-Federal Calculator

Non-Federal Calculator

SY 18-19 REPORT
•   Scroll over to the
    “REPORT” tab
•   Weighted average price
    to use in next year’s PLE
    tool
•   Select the method used
    from the drop-down
•   Summary of the
    information to justify
    your price change

Congratulations!

• Save this tool
• Upload in NEO with the Annual Application
  Packet
  – Supplemental Attachments
• For non-federal contributions, upload a
  statement from Superintendent or school
  board minutes

Questions

       Sarah Platt
        624-6879
sarah.d.platt@maine.gov

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